Selling Your Value Proposition
Quantitative research answers the ‘what’ questions
Quantitative research is conclusive in its purpose as it tries to quantify the problem and understand how prevalent it is by looking for results that can be projected to a larger population. Here we collect data through surveys (online, phone, paper), audits, points of purchase (purchase transactions) and click-streams.
- Uncover what is really happening with a particular issue
- Explore the range of feelings and thoughts about that issue
- Look for patterns and perspectives between stakeholders
- Identify ‘why’: look for motivations, behaviours and other factors that influence why these stakeholders do what they do
- Provide the basis for a traditional quantitative survey
- Test specific hypotheses uncovered by qualitative research
- Search for and identify specific evidence for noted behaviours
- Provide data on market sectors and subsegments (similarities and differences)
- Identify and confirm data related to a specific and tightly focused issue
- Look for consensus or disagreement on a topic
- Determine the common characteristics of particular groups
The limitations of traditional qualitative research
The solution is not simply to switch to traditional qualitative research – asking open questions and analysing the results. Here, the pitfall is that research subjects do not always tell you what they really think. Most importantly, they are not always open about their emotions, so they don’t always tell you how they feel, either.
To get inside customers’ heads and truly understand their motivations, a different approach is needed – one that uses social sciences research techniques rooted in psychology and anthropology.
When companies understand how their customers genuinely experience their company, products and services, this approach provides immensely powerful insights that can lead to transformative change.
What will the company be able to do differently by this stage?
From this second stage of the Value Proposition Builder™, the company gains a rich, deep understanding of its customers and what they actually value. With this insight, it can:
- create the core set of powerful messaging and stories for sales and marketing;
- improve key account management and go-to-market approaches for customers and distributors;
- identify how customer expectations are changing and what they are changing to, enabling the company to adjust its approach and offerings accordingly;
- have confidence in moving forward, with clarity and focus about its true value.
